Packaging yarn, thread, and the like



July 3 1926.

J. L. BARRY PACKAGING YARN, THREAD, AND THE LIKE Filed Oct. 1, 192.4

U .ml Q I v contains about eight or ten yards.

PATENT oFFics.

JOHN L. BARRY, O1" SCITUATE, MASSACHUSETTS.

PACKAGING- YARNZ, THREAD, AND THE LIKE.

I Applicattbn filed October 1, 1924. Serial No. 740,866.

My invention relates to the packaging of yarn. thread, and the like,which are commonly retailed in units of comparatively small quantity.The invention is particularly well suited to the packaging of embroideryyarns of silk, cotton or similar materials, and this application of theinvention will be here taken for the purpose of illustration though it.will beunderstood that the precise embodiments here shown and describedare to be regarded as but illustrative of my invention and not by way oflimiting the scope thereof. I have used the word yarn in thisspecification to include thread and other like materials.

At the present time embroidery yarn is commonly put up in skeins orhanks having, in one piece, eight or ten turns or loops, in which eachturn or loop of the yarn is ordinarily a yard long or thereabouts, thehank being folded or doubled and encircled around-its middle portion bya paper band so that the ordinary package for retail sales purposes isapproximately six inches lon and a fraction of an inch in diameter anThe preparation of such a package involves many hand operations, andthough it answers fairly well the requirements of the retailer, it is tothe consumer, extremely wasteful and troublesome to handle, use, andstow. To use the package it is first necessary to remove the paper bandwhich holds the hank folded or doubled. Thus, at the outset fthe labelwith its identifying name, trade-marks. and symbols is separated fromthe package and perhaps lost or discarded, making it more difiicult forthe consumer to buy or duplicate the precise brand, variety and shadewanted. If the consumer, in an effort to minimize snarling, cutsgthroughthe hank and severs the loops of the hank so that they may be held endfor end in'a bunch as long as the length of the loop, and threads aneedle as is commonly done with one full length equal to one loop (abouta yard),

any unused balance of the threading is 1nconvenient to save and hencefrequently thrown away. Other methods have been devised for avoiding thewhole or a part of the difiiculties above described, but they do nothave the advantages of the 'invention' hereinafter described.

The objects of the resent invention are to rovide a package t at is botheconomical and convenient to make and use, and whichadvertising andidentifying value 0 permits the withdrawal of any desired length of theyarn without materially affecti'ng the utility, shape or attractiveappearance of the package until ractically all of the yarn has been withrawn. Thus wastage of yarn is eliminated, for only such yarn as isnecessary need be severed from the package and the remainder ismaintained in one unsnarled, wrapped package ready for immediate use. Afurther object of the invention is to provide a package which may bewrapped in a paper band or label and remain so wrapped while the packageis being used, thus retainin tge t e wrapper or band. In some cases noband or wrapper isdesired, and it is one of the objects of 'thisinvention to provide such a package at no sacrifice of utility.

In the drawings illustrating the package and methods of making the same:

Fig. 1 isv an elevation illustrating the step of winding the yarn upon asuitable spindle;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the step of elongating thewound yarn in order to reduce the internal diameter of the coil:

Fig. 3 is an elevation illustrating a complete package made inaccordance-with this invention;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged end elevation of the same; and Fig. 5 is anelevation of the ackage shown in Fig. 3 with the addition of a suitableencircling band.

Referring to the drawings Fig. 1 shows the first step in making apackagei, and illustrates the yarn upon a spindle of a winding machinewhich has completed the windin This is done, preferably, by means of stwinding the yarn or the like on a spindle by what is commonly konwn inthe-trade asthe universal wind in which the yarn, thread, or cord'is, aswell known in the art and described by the manufacturer of the machines,wound on a spindle in regular close helical coils which reverse with asharp bend, each coil crossing over the next preceding coil, binding itin place at each crossing. Cops so wound are knownto manufacturers asclose coils or close wound if each turn is in contact with the recedingturn, or evenly spaced open win if the turns are somewhat separated. Iprefer the close coils but the evenly spaced open wind may be used ifdesired though teeaess ordinarily less satisfactory. In thisspecification I have used the term close wound or close coils, andevenly spaced open wind to mean packages so wound respectively and Ihave used the term universal wind to include both types. 2 designatesthe spindle of the windin machine which is rotated as indicated by t earrowat asuitable speed; 4 'the innerxor starting end of the yarninitially held fixed with reference to the spindle 2 by means of thespring clip 6 or other suitable means from which it can readily bereleased; 8 the coils of yarn upon the spindle; 10 the bends at the endsof the coils; and 12 the outer end of the yarn which has been regularlyled back and forth (by means not shown) traversing a given length of thespindle during its rotation so as to produce a suitable wind,andpreferably carry out the method described in United States Patent,No. 480,158, of Simon W. Wardwell, granted August 2, 1892, though I donot confine myself to such wlnd. In the preferred wind here shown thethread guide in its first traverse from above the inner to the outer endof the spindle forms three complete turns of the threadaround thespindle and on the reverse traverse of the thread ide three morecomplete turns are ma e around the spindle, each crossing the threadlaid at the outward traverse at almost a right angle and so onthroughout the winding operation, each thread being ordinarily laidclose to the thread laid by the first reciprocation by reason of thegainage given to the thread guide. .It will be observed that the effectof this is that when the cop is removed from the spindle the threads arein effect woven together and eachthread is held in place againstcollapse and tangling by a wall of interior thread with the exception ofthe few inches constituting the yarn wound at the first traverse of thethread guide to the end of the spindle and that length is held separatefrom the other threads by crossing them almost at right angles. The copwhen withdrawn from the winding spindle is approximately a hollowcylinder. My next step is to remove pernlilanently this hollow portionby elongating t e cop.

Fig. 2 illustrates the step (here but par tially completed) ofelongating after the winding has been performed, the coiled product ofthe winding machine being seized at its opposite ends and stretchedlongitudinally. This is here shown as being done by. hand after theremoval of the coiled product from the spindle which may be" andpreferably is slightly tapered to facilitate the removal, that is, thespindle may heof smaller It is then elongated or stretchedlongitudinallyuntil a substantial amount, and preferably substantially all, of thespace formerly occupied by the spindle is absorbed by the reduction ofthe internal diameter or central void, the external diameter beingcorrespondingly reduced. I have discovered that this attenuation impartsa stability and compactness to the-package which enables it to withstandthe subsequent withdrawal of the thread by its inner end 4 withoutadverse results The reduction of the internal central void results in anincrease in length, as for example, if about nine yards of embroideryyarn is wound upon a at spindle so that there are three complete turnsfect of this extension is to produce a package such as would be forme ifit were pos- 'sible, which it is not, to wind the cop upon a spindle ofinfinitesimal diameter and yet obtaina cop having a lengthcorresponding' to the traverse of the thread guide and otherwiseregularly laid as designed. It is, of course, contemplated that thisstep may be performed by machine as well as by hand.

Figs. 3 and 5 represent illustrative embodiments of this invention. Thepackages here shown are ready for packing, ship ment or use, and eithermay be used by simply withdrawing any desired length of the yarn fromthe inner end of the pack age. Ordinarily an encircling paper band 14hearing the name and trade-mark, together with identifying anddescriptive matter, will be preferred by both dealer and user, but incase it is dispensed with, it is simply necessary to tuck the-outer orfree end 12 of the yarn under one of the outer coils or turns (asindicated atflw in Fig. 3) so that the outer end of the yarn packagedoes not unwind during handling. The outer end 12 should preferably bebeneath the wrapper, if a wrapper is used (as in Fig. 5) in.order thatit may hold the outer end of the yarn from unwinding. The inner end4,the end from which the yarn is withdrawn, takes care of itself.

Fig. 4 is an end' view of the package shown in Fig; 3 and illustratingthe end of the package from which the yarn is withdrawn by its inner end4. The use of the foregolng method results in a. new and useful package.

wind means the yarn wound at each complete revolution of the and apackage is spoken of, for'example, as 3 wind if the coils-making up thepackage are 3 wind coils, that is, if in winding it, the

- spindle has made approximately three rotations or complete turns orrevolutions in winding a coil, that is, for each one way traverse of theguide which leads theyarn being wound back and forth from end to end ofthe package, or as 3% wind, it the spindle has made approximately 3rotations per traverse of the. guide from one end of the package to theother.

Having described my invention, What I wish to claim and secure byLetters Patent intermediate the ends-of said body and binding said coilin place at each crossing, the

inner end-of the yarn strand being-available and withdrawable from saidbody, and means for confining the outer end of said yarn strand.

2. A yarn package adaptedfor domestic use comprising in combination, anelongated flexible approximately cylindrical body having no appreciablecentral void and not being materially extensible longitudinally, formedof yarn wound in helical coils which reverse with abru t bends atthe-ends of said body, each coi having between one and six winds andcrossing the nextreceding coil intermediate the ends of said ody andbinding said coil in place at each crossing,

the inner end of the yarn strand being available and withdrawable fromsaid body; and 'a suitable band-surrounding said body intermediate theends thereof.

3. A yarn package adapted for domestic usecomprisingin combination,-aflexible approximately cylindrical body having a length of at least 4times its diameter, with no appreciable central void and not beingmaterially extensible'longitudinally, formed of yarn wound in'helicalcoils which reverse with abrupt bends at the ends of said body, eachcoil having approximately three winds and crossing the next precedingcoil intermediate theends of said body approximately five times andbinding said coil in place at each crossing, the inner end of the yarnstrand being available and withdrawable' from said body; and a band ofsuitable material surrounding said body intermediate the ends thereofandconfining the outer end of the yarn strand.

4. The method of producing an elongated approximately cylindrical yarnpackage adapted for domestic use which consists in winding on a spindlea yarn body consisting of helical coils of more than one wind and whichreverse with abrupt bends at the ends of said body, each coil crossingthe next pgeceding coil intermediate the ends of said dy and bindingsaid'coil in place at each crossing; then removing said body from thespindle; then stretching said body longitudinally to close the centralvoid left by the withdrawal from said spindle; then confining the outerend of the yarn strand; and at some stage of the process rendering andthereafter maintaining the inner end of the yarn strand withdrawablefrom said body.

5. The method of producing an elongated approximately cylindrical yarnpackage adapted for domestic use which consists in winding on a spindlea yarn body consisting of helical coils of more than one wind and whichreverse with abrupt bends at the ends preceding coil intermediate theends of said body and binding said coil in place at each crossing; thenremoving said body from the spindle; then stretching said. bodylongitudinally to close the central void left by the.

withdrawal from said spindle; then banding said body in such a manner asto confine the outer end of yarn strand; and at some stage of theprocess rendering available and thereafter maintaining the inner end ofthe yarn strand withdrawable from said body.

JOHN L. BARRY.

